In its annual report, the federal agency notes that the total number of complaints it received against both domestic and foreign carriers has increased in the past year.

It received 301 complaints against eight Canadian carriers in 2012-2013, up from 215 complaints in 2011-2012.

Complaints against foreign carriers rose to 218 in 2012-2013, compared to 145 the previous year.

Quality of service was the most commonly cited issue for the seventh year in a row, although the agency notes that those types of complaints are outside its mandate.

Some consumer rights advocates say that an increase in complaints speaks to the need for an airline passenger bill of rights.

Impassable phone menus

Industry Minister James Moore had previously suggested Ottawa would consider such an initiative, but the measure was absent from the throne speech last fall.

Allegations about rude, unhelpful staff and poor communication are among some of the complaints to the CTA.

A handful of complaints allege that passengers were put up in “dingy” hotels, where there were cockroaches and escorts, after they had been bumped from their flights or while facing delays. Thirty-nine cite problems with getting in touch with a carrier’s customer service department citing “impassable phone menus.”

“I tried to contact Air Canada, however they do not have a claims department, no phone number to call or a live person to explain the situation to. Only an email address that no one answers,” says one complainant.

“Correspondence with airline has run me around in circles,” writes another complainant of his experience with Sunwing Airlines Inc. “Representative does not respond to phone calls, and emails are weeks apart.”

There’s no risk for the airline

Air Canada received the lion’s share of service complaints during the period with 150, while Sunwing had 24 complaints. WestJet, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and United Airlines were mentioned about a dozen times each.

Air Canada, the country’s largest airline, notes that it carries an average of 115,000 customers a day and more than 35 million people a year.

“While we strive for zero complaints, in this context, 150 complaints is a minute fraction relative to the number of interactions we have with all our customers,” spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick said in an email.

Although quality of service issues are outside of the agency’s mandate, many complaints about quality of service also cite other issues — such as lost baggage, flight disruptions or incidents where passengers are bumped from overbooked flights.

The aim of the agency’s informal complaint process is to ensure that airlines are operating in line with the rules set out in their tariffs, the written guidelines that outline how passengers should be treated.

But the agency doesn’t award damages to passengers — something that passenger rights advocate Gabor Lukacs says would help deter airlines from breaking the conditions of their contracts.

“Right now the worst case scenario is that CTA will order them to pay the passenger,” says the Halifax-based mathematician. “Given that the agency refuses to award costs, there’s no risk for the airline.”

Lukacs has had his share of run-ins with carriers and has filed dozens of complaints with the agency. Some of his conflicts with airlines have landed in court and have led to changes, such as a ruling by the agency that Air Canada must increase its compensation to passengers who are bumped from overbooked domestic flights.

However, airlines note that not all complaints filed with the CTA are legitimate.

Sunwing spokeswoman Jessica Patriquin says in some cases, passengers simply don’t understand the rules around compensation and expect to be compensated more than is appropriate.

“As a result, that process may feel as though they’re going in ’circles,”’ Patriquin said in an email.

Sunwing also noted that all of the complaints it was mentioned in during the period in question have been resolved.

Meanwhile, in response to a number of complaints that Air Canada failed to notify passengers of its new check-in time, the carrier argues that it extensively promoted the change via news releases, social media, email notifications and on its website.

It also admits that customers looking to resolve issues after their flight have to do so via email, noting that it’s easier to deal with more complex, post-flight issues such as claims and refunds online.

Meanwhile, Iberia says the customer who complained booked his flight through the website Expedia and it was up to the portal, not the airline, to notify the customer of the change.

Anemone Cerridwen does not wear shoes. Ever. Shoes made her feet ache, and bleed, and so three years ago she abandoned wearing them altogether. Embracing a barefoot life has led to legal skirmishes with transit authorities in Vancouver, where she used to live, and Montreal, where she lives now, and Ottawa, her hometown. She complained to the Canadian Transportation Agency, saying her foot problems amounted to a disability under the law. In a newly released decision, the CTA makes it clear it was not convinced: “The Agency is of the opinion that the problems with Ms. Cerridwen’s feet — overlapping toes, bleeding heels, corns, calluses, blisters and squeezed toes — are common, relatively minor and, in most cases, easily addressed by people and usually without medical intervention.” In an email interview with the Post’s Joe O’Connor from her Montreal apartment Wednesday, Ms. Cerridwen, a writer, explained her choices.

Q: You have gone barefoot, full-time, since July 9, 2009. What, exactly, is wrong with your feet?

A: I have very wide, big-boned, square-toed feet, with extra long fourth toes. If I had never worn shoes, my feet would be fine. But if I have to wear shoes, I suffer. They are always too tight in the toes, with never enough room for all my toes (I had overlapping toes in shoes — imagine walking on overlapping toes all your life), plus too loose in the heels. Stiff shoes not only wrecked my socks they also stripped the skin off the back of my heels. When I finally found a pair of hiking boots that gave me more room in the toes, I developed a soft corn between two toes — from a bone spur.

Q: It’s currently minus-14 in Montreal. Don’t you get cold feet?

A: Yes, of course. I have gotten to the point where I have no real problems walking on dry sidewalk down to about -7 to -10 (I can’t remember my record last year), even in cold winds. But walking on packed snow is colder. And slush is terrible. If it’s really salty it can burn.

I stick to the sunny side of the street in winter and the shady side of the street in summer

Q: What about in the summer, when sidewalks are fry-an-egg hot?

A: I find it is much easier, both in very cold weather and very hot weather, to keep moving, because my feet are on the ground for a shorter period of time that way. I stick to the sunny side of the street in winter and the shady side of the street in summer. When I’m stuck waiting at a traffic light, I either hop around or go stand on the grass in summer, and take turns putting one foot on top of the other in winter. Also in summer, the painted lines on the streets are very nice and cool to walk on. They’re slippery when wet, though.

Q: What advice would you give to someone considering the barefoot life?

A: Start slowly. Seriously, blisters are not fun. If you don’t go barefoot at all, start by going barefoot indoors, then work your way up. Smooth sidewalks are easier for sensitive feet than rough sidewalks. You can also try hiking on forest trails to start, since they are not as hard on feet as concrete. Also, start outside in warmer weather, when you don’t have to worry about cold feet.

http://www.anemonecerridwen.netAnemone Cerridwen stopped wearing shoes entirely on July 9, 2009. Her feet are the wrong shape for shoes, she says. Instead, she goes barefoot.

Q: What’s the downside of being barefoot, besides not being able to take public transport in some major Canadian cities?

A: Gravel, and abrasives — those horrible sharp little stones they put down for traction in winter. On bare sidewalk, they are sharp. They’re not so bad embedded in snow, though, and I understand why something is necessary. Still, I’d prefer sand. So would some dogs, from what I’m told. I also get offered shoes or money for shoes from time to time. It is not bad, but it is a bit embarrassing — all these nice people — and I rebuff them!

Q: What happens when you walk into, say, a grocery store?

A: Most people don’t notice or don’t care. I’ve been told about “hygiene” laws a couple of times in grocery stores, but as it happens, it is not illegal or a health issue to go barefoot in stores or restaurants. People who prepare food have to have clean footwear, but even in Quebec it doesn’t specifically say they must wear shoes. When people do say something, they’re usually fine with the doctor’s note I tend to carry with me.

Q: Do you pity us shoe-wearers?

A: I totally understand why people would want to dress their feet up in fabulous shoes, and support them even if they need surgery after. I mean, you have to have some fun, and I was often jealous that I couldn’t buy shoes to dress up in. They can really make the outfit.

They rarely get completely clean

Q: You can’t, as my mother would say, take your dirty shoes off at the door. What do you do about dirty feet?

A: I wipe my feet at the door to get the worst of it, then go to the bathroom and run my feet under the bathtub tap, scrubbing if necessary. They rarely get completely clean, but at least I can get the stuff that will come off on my sheets and towels.

Q: The Canadian Transportation Agency has rejected your demand that [Ottawa’s] OC Transpo allow you to ride barefoot. So, what’s your recourse? Has a lawyer offered to take up your cause? Or are you simply banned for good?

A: Well, I can wait for the barefoot movement to increase to the point that the rules seem silly and get thrown out. Or I can talk to reporters (those of you who are interested) and hope that helps. I have another case in Montreal that may go my way, which would help. It all seemed so easy with my first complaint, in Vancouver. I have taken up praying. Why not?